The Arcean Reflex
by Bulbafreak9000
Summary: A young romance cut by an arranged marriage, a strange diety with a mysterious goal, and the entire Pokemon world caught in the middle. Rated T for some cursing and perverted teenagers. Chapter 3 up!
1. Prologue: The Game Begins

The Arcean Relfex

Bulbafreak9000

_Prologue: The Games Begin_

_A young man ran up the steps, into the nothingness. _

_"All finished. The last one is in place."_

_It gave no response. It sat there, eyes closed, silent. _

"_Something has to be done soon. The board is set, the players in position. Can't we start now?"_

_A long, deep growl was heard from the being next to him. The growl was of sorrow, of pain. It was obvious he was against the entire thing, no matter how essential it was. _

_"How do you think I feel? You've had millions of years to prepare. I've had less than six months. God knows how the pawn will feel."_

_Another growl, another one of sorrow, of anguish, came from the Being. _

_"Erm… I guess you do know… But it has to be done. And soon." He sat down, letting his feet hang off the edge, into the nothingness. These past months had been hell. How else could it have been explained? He'd dare not say that to the Being though. That'd get him killed. Sighing, he slowly pulled his scarf off of his neck, then removed his hat. There was a surprising wind in the nothingness. He turned around and he saw that the Being had turned a light shade of blue, one of his arms touching a slab of rock the same color. He shut his eyes and felt the wind, felt the peace, knowing that for a long time, it'd not be like this anymore. _

_And again he wondered about the others. He left what seemed like just months ago. It had to have been years ago. How much had changed? How much had he changed? When he went back, would it be the same? No, of course not. He wouldn't be able to talk to them, get to know them again. Not for a while, anyway. He'd be like a ghost. _

_The Being let out a small purr. It was delighted at the irony in his thoughts. Turning around, he saw that the Being now glow purple, the same color as the rock beneath its hand. "I forgot you had a sense of humor," he laughed. _

_"You know, my younger sister is still down there," he said. "When I left, she was what… seven? She hadn't even gotten her first Pokemon…" _

_He looked down into the nothingness. He couldn't tell its color. It couldn't have been black, since black is the reflection of all color. But if there was really nothing in nothing, then that wasn't true. And just for a second, he wanted to launch out into the nothing, to find something. He'd already seen all else there had to be seen, except what was in the nothing. The nothingness wasn't a vacuum, as some think. Outer Space is a vacuum. Everyone had seen that. Only one had seen what was in the nothingness, known what nothing really was, and it sat, feet behind him. And it wasn't telling. _

_It growled again. More anguish. More sorrow. The Being knew just what was about to happen, as it always did. He wondered if it was really sad about what was about to happen, or what had happened. Or maybe it's the nothingness. _

_The Being stood and opened its eyes. He looked at it. He'd never seen its eyes. Then he looked where it looked. A light appeared in the nothingness. He moved closer to the Being, to get a better look at the light. Something was falling through it. _

_He squinted hard. What is that? It looks like… nah, it couldn't be… _

_It began to fall faster. That isn't… is it?_

_It came into view. It is… it's a…_

_The Pokeball smacked him in the face, and he fell, sprawling flat on the ground. The Being opened its great jowls and laughed. _

_"Venatus"it said, still laughing, "Suscipio."_


	2. Game Start: Emotional Spin

The Arcean Reflex

Bulbafreak9000

AN: This is Bulba again, with a… erm… what is this, seventh? I think a seventh fanfic that I got big plans for, but never get around to doing them. So, anyway, this will be my fateful return to the Pokemon Tower! Yes, I too am excited. My last few ventures of fanfiction, into Kim Possible and my unseen Metroid fic, and my starting over…er of A Rockets World haven't really… ah, hell, they aren't going anywhere. But this I have hope for. I got the idea for it by my characters on Diamond and Pearl. people groan Don't worry, its not going to be the usual kind of story… hopefully. If you read the prologue, you'll know I have big ideas for this. Anyway, onto the fic!

GAME START: EMOTIONAL SPIN

"God, what time is it? Er…" The boy rolled over and turned off his alarm. "Eight o'clock already? Geez…" He climbed out of bed and walked into the bathroom. He looked into the mirror. Who am I again? Matt Digeranimo. Fourteen years old. Son of Vincent Digeronimo and Cynthia Lane. Arranged to be married to Julia Thomson, who lives over 2,500 miles away, in another continent.

He hated it. His family, along with every other, deciding their child's fate right at birth. It'd been happening for many, many years. Used to be an old ritual. Now it was a huge burden. Not to mention a law. It was made a law during the Ash Ketchum VS Deliah Ketchum case, about ten years ago. He was arranged to marry some girl he'd never met in some place called Fiorre. But he was somewhat of a gigolo. He had girls on about four other continents. Everyone thought he'd win the trial. But the judge was a supporter of it. Not to mention the most influential member of the World Council. Why was he recalling this? He didn't know. He just liked random facts.

He'd seen his fiancé on a video phone once, about three years ago. She was a pretty girl, his age. She seemed shy. Julia was fine, he guessed. Didn't really seem his type. Matt liked girls with a bit more energy. Someone who at one moment could be screaming her head off because something really cool happened, and then bored the next because nothing cool was happening now. Julia didn't seem to fit that description. He didn't know her though. And only what, two more precious weeks until he was _required_ to travel to… what was it again… Sinnoh? He'd already gotten his ticket for the boat ride over. Time passed too fast for him. He had things he wanted to finish beforehand. And, as he had finally gotten an adult Pokemon license, he'd be able to do them. No more school for him.

He silently made a list of things to do, adding things on with everything he finished. Brush teeth. Take shower. Oh, I gotta go to the Pokemart. Get dressed. Did I ever get the money he owed me for all those burgers? Grab Pokeballs. Greet parents. I gotta take everything out of my savings account before I go, don't I? Grab waffle. Grab sweatshirt and hat. Walk out door. Say another word to Sara than hi…

"Hey Matt!" Sara cheerily waved back. He smiled and weakly said "H-hi…" before quickly walking off. He did it again. Sara, of course, was the girl next door. Seventeen years old, blonde, beautiful, and was at least a double E. She wasn't a proud girl. She was actually the nicest person he'd ever met. But, God, did she like wearing those low cut shirts. And it was almost impossible to refuse everytime she invited him to go swimming over her house. He always hated to. But occasionally he'd see her from his bedroom window, in her bikini, just getting out of the pool. She was so beautiful… That's one thing he had to do before he left. Go swimming with Sara.

What was there to do in Ecruteak City, or left to do, he wondered, as he walked the street, his Quilava following him. There was that old burned down tower, but he'd already explored with that place a while ago. Morty'd never let him challenge his gym, even if he had three badges. He never was able to sneak past those creepy bald priests that guarded the Tin Tower. He could try that again. Shrugging, he decided he'd give it a shot.

"God, I am having the worst hairday!" yelled Julia from the bathroom. Her hair was going every which way that morning. Disrobing, she stepped into the shower. Grabbing the shampoo, she swished it around in her hands and put it in her hair.

"Who put honey in my shampoo?" screamed Julia. Her younger brother, sitting at the table, snickered as he spread honey on his toast. Their mother had spent another night at "grandma's", so he could get away with any pranks he pulled. She'd come home a hell of a lot happier than she was when she left. Combee hid under his chair, the top right head laughing, the top left crying, and the bottom face indifferent, thumping its abdomen up and down, awaiting something else to do.

A little later Julia walked into the kitchen, fully dressed. She popped some toast into the toaster and sat down.

"What's with the white winter hat thing?" asked Ben, smiling, thinking how bad her hair must have looked underneath that hat. Torturing his sister is what he was born for. He was sure of it.

"Like you don't know, you brat," she replied, lifting a certain finger in the air. "Anyway, what you actually _don't_ know is that winter wear is in. Not only am I wearing this hat, but I'm also wearing a scarf and snow boots. So your stupid prank effected my life in exactly zero ways."

"Then what was that scream? I obviously got to you somehow. That means I won! Ha! I beat you!" He began to laugh wildly.

"Had you been more maniacal you'd have a cape and fangs," she said, condescendingly. "And had you been smarter you'd know I don't care one bit about however many pranks you pull on me. Because," she stopped for dramatic, before saying to a catchy beat, "I'm getting married in two weeks! I'm getting married in two weeks!"

"I thought that's when you left to meet him," he asked.

"Either way, I'm outta here in two weeks. And I'm also outta here now." Her toast popped and she caught it, putting it in her mouth, and walked out the door.

"Girls are weird," Ben muttered, making Combee buzz angrily. "Human girls, I meant," he said quickly.

As she walked out of the front gate, she let out a whistle. A Piplup popped out of a garden pool and chased after her. It gave a questioning "Pip?" as it looked at Julia's new attire. Julia shrugged with and "Eh" and kept walking.

Strolling through the quiet town of Twinleaf. That's all she did anymore. Life had become a bore. All the guys had become jackasses since puberty, showing off their big Pokemon to compensate for… other things. Besides, they were all engaged with her friends. Only her mom would arrange for her to marry someone on another continent. But it was fine with her. She was looking forward to it. He was a cute and somewhat muscular, according to the last picture she got of him. And he seemed really nice that time she talked to him… when she was eleven. She had to give her mom credit. She knew how to pick the hunks. And what, only two more hellish weeks before he got here? Of course it took a day to sail here. And then the grueling trip to Hearthome. But then, she'd have her fiancé, her knight in shining armor, who'd she bring home, and then, after he met everyone here, he'd carry her off to some magical, exotic land. And only two, extensively long, prankfilled weeks til Matt got here. It almost made her swoon.

Not much left to do at all, she thought. There isn't anything famous in Twinleaf. No towers, no legendary Pokemon, not even a Pokemon Center or a Pokemart. There was Sandgem Town, across Route 201, but she was sure to see a Bidoof while going over there. How she hated Bidoof. One had bit here when she was a child and almost put a hole through her leg. She was fine now, no problems, but she still hated them.

There was Lake Verity. Now really only a popular swimming hole, there used to be a rumor about some awesome Pokemon that hid there. What was it… a red Gyarados? That was something to do. Find a red Gyarados. She could do that. But of course, if she were going to the lake, she'd have to invite Markus… Eh, what the heck, she thought, he isn't that bad. He's actually kinda cute. And Piplup didn't seem too bad with his Turtwig either. But God, if he looks up my skirt again, I'm gonna kick his ass.

Sneaking in through the window, knowing one of the monks always slept by the door, Matt tiptoed past one with what looked like a bottle of booze in his hands. Quilava sniffed the bottle, then recoiled. He swept up the stairs, stepping over the fourth stair from the top, which always creaked. He cracked the door at the top open just a bit, to see a fat priest staring at a TV, chip crumbs on his shirt and powdery cheese seasoning on his hands. He opened the door slowly and rolled a Pokeball over to the large, plush chair. A small, quite beam shot out of it, and his Drowzee materialized from it. Matt whispered "Hypnosis" from behind the door, then shut it and put his fingers in his ears.

About ten seconds later he cracked the door again, to see both Drowzee and the monk asleep. Sighing, he walked over, picked up the Pokeball, and recalled Drowzee. It was the only Pokemon that was put asleep by its own Hypnosis. Putting the Pokeball on his belt, he walked out another door towards the Tin Tower. This was the hard part. Instead of taking the usual path, he hid behind the trees on the side of the road. He slowly approached the tower to see a young, muscular priest guarding its front door. This was the guy who'd always beaten him before. He's somehow impervious to Hypnosis, and has the hearing of a Noctowl.

This time, Matt had a plan. First, he was gonna send Drowzee to try to go inside, and while the monk was chasing Drowzee, he'd go in. Then, Drowzee would Teleport to him from wherever he was. By the time the guard got back he'd never know Matt was in the tower. He released Drowzee and slapped him awake. Dizzily, Drowzee stumbled over to the front of the tower. The guard stared at the Pokemon for a bit, then stepped aside, and let Drowzee in, asking it to wipe its feet before entering. Matt's jaw dropped.

Next Matt decided to send Quilava in. When Quilava got him far enough away, he'd use a smoke bomb and then run back to the tower and find Matt. Quilava humbly made his way over to the priest and sat down in front of him. Kindly asking him not to use his fire in the tower, he stepped aside and let him in. This guy had to be crazy. He'd chased Matt off tons of times before. Deciding it was worth a shot; Matt walked up, wiped his shoes on the welcome mat, and tried to walk inside. The guard caught him by the collar of his shirt and dragged him from the door.

"Haven't I already told you? You aren't allowed in there, child," he said, annoyed.

"What do you mean? You just let Drowzee in!" yelled Matt.

"That was a Pokemon. Pokemon are allowed in the tower to give thanks and pray to the gods. Filthy children who have no respect aren't allowed in." He let go of the struggling Matt's collar, which caused him to fall to the ground.

Getting up gracefully and brushing himself off, Matt snapped back, "I am not filthy or disrespectful. Just curious."

"Well," said the monk, "I recommend you go be curious at some other place. Disrespectful deviants aren't allowed here."

"I'm not a deviant!"

"Did you not just try to sneak into the sacred temple?"

"That's totally different than being a deviant! And I wasn't sneaking!"

"So if I go in the other building I'll not find Monk Gawasen asleep?"

"He's always asleep!"

"You are a disrespecting deviant, and aren't allowed her. Get out!"

"I am not a deviant!"

"I believe _I'm_ the deviant here."

They both turned to see a strange looking boy wearing a scarf and a large cap, leaning on the door frame. He had a strange monkey like Pokemon standing next to him, who jumped up and down, holding a pair of bells.

"The sacred bells!" yelled the monk. "You stole them! Return them at once!"

"Not likely, bald dude," he said, sneering. The monk took a fighting position, but the boy just stayed loose.

"Give those back, child, or I'll be forced to harm you." The monk was serious. Fire was burning in his eyes.

"Nah, I think I'm fine," he replied, as the monkey Pokemon spun the bells on his finger. The monk lashed out, and the boy bent back dodging. Another attack came from seemingly nowhere from the monk. The boy dodged this too. This evolved into a dance of sorts. Matt sat and watched. It was amazing. He'd been kicked by this monk many times, and it always felt like lightening coming at him.

As time went by, the dance got slower, the performers moving slower and slower, until the monk and the boy stopped entirely. Matt looked around him, and time had stopped. He turned back to the frozen fight, and the boy was gone. From behind him, the boy's voice came.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" he yelled. He stood a few feet away from Matt. "Go get the crystal bells!"

"Wait," replied Matt, "what? What crystal bells?"

The boy sighed. "At the top of the tower. There's two more pairs of bronze bells, like Chimchar had, and then there's a pair of crystal ones. Go get them while I hold this guy off."

"W-why?" Matt asked, confused.

"Trust me. Just go!" replied the boy. Matt nervously nodded and darted into the building. He was compelled to listen to this boy. He felt time come back, and he could hear the struggle outside.

Looking up to the top of the tower, he saw it was all a big winding staircase, with shrines at certain intervals. He began to run up the steps as quickly as he could. A few floors up, he found Drowzee, asleep, spooning an also sleeping Gastly, and Quilava, curled up a little ways away from them. Looking around, he tapped a Pokeball onto the Gastly, which opened, consumed it, shook three times, and pinged. He let it out, into the exact same position it was in before. Gastly wasn't a bad Pokemon to get, he thought to himself. He left his two Pokemon there and continued up the steps. They seemed to go on forever. About ten floors up, his thighs began to burn. Twenty floors up, his ankles killed him. Thirty-five, he was surprised his legs didn't fall off. He was almost there now. Snores echoed in the tower, and small, smothered grunts could be heard from outside. Forty floors up, he made it. In the corners of the room were three pairs of bells, one crystal. Matt could see the place where the other pair hung. Not hesitating, he grabbed the bells and raced down the steps, getting about two floors down before he couldn't go any further. He let out a whistle, and Drowzee teleported to him, with Quilava and the now confused Gastly. He recalled the other two and told Drowzee to teleport him back to the first floor. It nodded, yawned, and closed its eyes. They now stood near the front door, and Matt hurried out to see how the boy was doing. Drowzee collapsed there, sleeping again.

The boy was definitely getting tired, but not as much as the monk. His moves were less subtle now, and seemed to be controlled more by his rage than by his mind. The boy flipped backwards, monkey climbing on his shoulders, and snapped. Time froze again.

"So you… got them… huh?" he panted. "Cool. Now… your trip to Sinnoh… has been moved up."

Matt was dumbfounded. "What do you mean my trip to Sinnoh? How did you know about that t?"

"No time… I'll give you a ten minute head start to go home and get your ticket. Run to Olivine after that. Should take no more than an hour. Trade your ticket in for the closest trip. I'll explain to your parents. Recall Drowzee and go."

Matt stared at him. "Are you crazy?" he asked.

"After all this time, maybe. Now go. Trust me. Oh, and keep those bells with you, no matter what."

There was something in this guy's eyes that made Matt want to believe him. So Matt took the chance. After recalling Drowzee, he started to run, legs still aching. He jumped down the stairs of the monks' house, over the boozer, and out into the time-time-frozen streets. Minutes later he burst into his house, ran to his room, and grabbed the tickets. Almost diving down the steps and out of the house, he rushed down the sidewalk. Time was starting to move again. He took one last look at Sara. Sadly, this wasn't what he wanted to remember her for: her breasts bouncing in slow motion as she jumped in excitement because her new plant began to bloom; but he didn't mind really.

By the time Matt got to the city limits, time had all but come back. He made his way through the City Border Building, almost tripping an old lady and getting some bad looks from a security guard. The bells were small enough to fit into his pocket, so they were safe from his view. When he got to the route he slowed down. It wasn't far from Olivine City. None of the cities were that far away from each other, if you took the recommended routes. He walked the rest of the way, denying at least four random trainers in their requests for battles, making one very pretty lady cry. To make up for it, he gave her about $20 dollars, and she said something about how it wouldn't get him too far, and from there he just walked away. In a half hour he was at Olivine. He walked through the streets to the port, passing the old, shut down gym, who's leader had left for other places to train.

From his entrance into the city to the port, it took him twenty minutes. Olivine was a fairly large place, and very busy. It was full of sailors and merchants, including some guy wearing a trench coat who offered him cheap prices for supposedly top of the line Poketchs. Matt didn't buy, and the guy stormed off, offended. When he reached the counter for commercial boat rides, he found the woman behind it to be asleep, a magazine covering her face. He knocked on the glass, and she almost fell out of her chair. She sighed and picked a card which she was supposed to read from.

"Hello valued customer. How am I, insert name here, able to help you?"

With an eyebrow raised, Matt said, "I'd like to exchange this ticket for the next ship to Sinnoh."

She searched around for another card. Once she found it, she read, "I, insert name here, can do that for you. Take other ticket. Give new ticket."

The two sat there staring at each other for a second. Then, the woman's head started to bob. Matt couldn't believe it. "God, could you just give me my new ticket?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah." She took his ticket and, as the card said, gave him the new one. He read the ticket, as she most probably wasn't going to give him any information on it.

"Wait a second, this ship leaves in five minutes!" he yelled.

The woman shrugged. "You wanted to get on the next ship to Sinnoh."

He ran off to find which one was his. The S.S. um… Ship? He looked around for it. There were about twenty boats in the harbor. Hurrying down the docks, he read each one. S.S. Pidgey, S.S. Nickel, S.S. Pebbles, S.S. Jum'blia… and then he saw it. A large white ship, pulling slowly out of the harbor. Matt sprinted towards the harbor and jumped, hands outreached. Splashing into the water, he managed to just get his fingers around a piece of rope hanging off of the ship.

Panting, Matt looked up towards the deck of the ship. A Chansey was looking down upon him. A green haired woman hurried over next to it.

"Oh my!" she yelled. She turned to the rest of the boat. "There's someone hanging off the side of the boat! Help get him up!"

A few minutes later Matt was shivering in a plastic deck chair, a towel wrapped around him. The woman who had found him, along with her Chansey, stood near him, arguing with a sailor who was looking for a ticket. Shakily, he lifted his ticket out of his sweatshirt. The sailor grabbed it from him, looked it over for a second, then shrugged and walked away.

"Why don't you walk faster?" yelled Markus, at least eighty yards ahead of Julia. His Turtwig and her Piplup were walking beside him, having a conversation about whatever Pokemon talk about. Julia assumed it was about the Gyarados, and how they'd take it down, but who knows. Unless they were directly trying to get a point across to a human, no one could understand Pokemon. No one could understand Markus either. Sometimes he was a spaz, running and hurrying everywhere he went. Sometimes he was a perv, sneaking into girls locker rooms and using a long stick to lift girls skirts up. Other times he was quiet, deep in thought. And sometimes, even, he could be the sweetest guy in the world.

"C'mon, hurry it up!" he yelled, now stopped over one-hundred and fifty yards away. Julia hadn't noticed how slow she'd been walking. Immediately, she burst into a run, taking Markus by surprise. It put him in a ten second daze, by which time Julia had past him. He ran after her, leaving their Pokemon struggling to catch up with their short legs.

"This fast enough for you?" Julia yelled back to Markus, still about five yards away.

"Its fast enough to blow your skirt up!" he hooted back. She came to a quick, skidding halt, hands holding her skirt down. Markus, still at top speed, crashed into her, sending them flying forward in a tangled web. Markus grabbed hold of Julia and turned, making it so he'd hit the ground, with her on top of him. She cringed as they both smashed into the ground. Opening her eyes, she found herself face to face with her sandy-haired savior, his arms still around her. Right then, he looked breathtaking. He slowly opened his eyes and asked her if she were alright.

"I'm… I'm fine…" she replied, looking into his deep green eyes.

"Good," he said quietly.

"Yeah," she replied. Their faces slowly moved closer.

Pinch.

Punch.

Moments later Julia stood pinching the bridge of her nose, while Markus lay curled on the ground, wind knocked out of him.

"I can't believe you'd do that! Such a wonderful moment, and you pinch my butt!" she yelled as he slowly got up. Julia looked at him, and he was no longer her handsome hero, but a perverted little boy with dirt on his face.

He got up laughing, wiping the dirt off of his shirt. "Okay, okay, let's do that again, this time, I won't pinch you, so long as you don't punch me."

She shook her head in amazement. "No!"

Markus walked over to her and held her by the hips. "C'mon, it'll be just like before. I'll hold you, and slowly we'll come together…"

Julia pushed away from him. "No, I'm just… you ruined the moment. That was the moment, and you ruined it." She stood there for a second, then said, "Thinking about it, the whole reason we fell down is because you were looking up my skirt!"

He walked by her, continuing to the lake. "The reason we fell down," he stopped and looked back, "is because you decided to wear a short skirt today. And every other day." He turned back around and walked a bit further. "As a matter of fact," he turned to her again, "I think you like the attention."

She was speechless. "I do not!" She tried to pull her skirt down further, but it wouldn't budge. "What do you guys think?" she asked, turning around. Piplup and Turtwig, who had caught up while they had been fighting, pretended not to notice. Scoffing, she continued walking at her regular pace, muttering under her breath that Markus was a perverted bastard.

Matt sat on the bottom bunk of one set in a cabin on the boat, in his undershirt, with a blanket wrapped around his waist, and in his hand the crystal bells were clenched. Quilava sat on the floor, its back flaming just enough to let Matt dry off. On a table by the bed sat his trainer's bag and his hat. He shivered a bit, and stared at a young woman on top the topbunk of the other set of beds. She wore a white dress, her light brown hair let fallen down her back. She looked strangely familiar, but Matt couldn't put his finger on it. Where had he seen her? It had to have been somewhere in Ecruteak… was she one of Sarah's friends? Maybe an old neighbor… He couldn't think well with the squeaky from Chansey shining her egg on the other bottom bunk.

Cheryl, the green haired woman, walked into the small room with his sweatshirt and pants hanging on her arm, now dried. She handed them to him, and he slipped his sweatshirt on. He stared at the other two, until they got his point and turned around. Chansey struggled to turn on the bed, but gave up and closed her eyes. Matt slipped his pants on and called all clear. Cheryl sat down beside him.

"Sorry you have to share a cabin with us. There's a pretty large rush to go to Sinnoh, lately. All the other cabins are taken up." She could tell he didn't mind though. He had other things on his mind. "So…" She seemed to be trying to decide how to put something, but couldn't find the words.

"You want to know why I jumped after the boat?" he asked, to her surprise. She nodded respectfully. "I was going to miss the boat, so I winged it. Literally." Cheryl giggled, but the girl just turned over and started playing with something they couldn't see. Cheryl ignored her.

"So why did you need to come to Sinnoh so badly? Couldn't you wait for another boat?" she asked.

He didn't have an answer to that question. Why did he have to get on this boat right away? Because that guy said so. Because he had those bells. He slowly slipped them into his pocket so she wouldn't see them. Why did he have the bells? Because the guy told him to take them. Why did he listen to the guy? This he didn't know. But he couldn't tell her all that. Not only would that make Matt look stupid, but it would make him a felon. He already was, actually. So, to satisfy her question, he told her a half-truth.

"Er… my fiancé lives in Sinnoh. I've, uh, been waiting to meet her for a while. And now was finally the time, I suppose." Okay, Matt told himself, maybe it was more of a quarter-truth.

Cheryl, though, had stars in her eyes. "Wow!" she said with admiration. "That's so romantic! Jumping from a dock to have the slightest chance of getting on it, because you couldn't wait to see your beloved any longer! Its just so romantic!"

The woman on the top bunk turned back and shrugged. Then he noticed who she was. "Its not the best story I've heard," she said. Their eyes met, and she knew he was hiding something. He knew she knew something about it.

"What do you mean, Jasmine?" Cheryl asked inquisitively. She knew there was something about her voice that revealed something.

And though there were many somethings in the room that most likely needed revealing, Jasmine let Matt keep his secret. "Love story," she replied. "It's not the best love story I've heard."

Matt sighed, knowing he was safe. Morty had introduced the two of them before. Jasmine was the leader of the Olivine gym. She used to also run the lighthouse, but after it was replaced by machinery, she decided that gym challenges were low enough that she could go train elsewhere. She was nice enough not to tell on him. But he decided for the moment, it would be better for him to get out of the room to think about his situation more. It was then he remembered a book he had in his bag. His mother wrote all kinds of phone numbers in it, including his fiancé's. Why? Safety, OCD, who knew? But it came in handy.

"I think," he said, reaching for his bag and pulling out the book, "I think I'll go call Julia now."

Stars came to Cheryl's eyes again. "Wow," she asked, "Is that her name? Such love between the two of you! And such a beautiful name too! Oh, you are so lucky to have someone to love! Such love is so hard to come by…" While she went on, he slowly snuck out. Chansey had gone back to shining her egg, and Jasmine returned to playing with whatever she had on the top bunk.

Matt walked around the deck until he found a sign pointing him towards some public phones. Did he realize what he had done? He'd stolen something. He took the crystal bells from the tower at some random guy's request. Why again? He seemed… hypnotizing. He could have made anyone do it. How? Maybe he used a Pokemon. Maybe there was a psychic type somewhere around there. Possibly a ghost type… yeah, then it wouldn't have been seen.

Well, even if he did steal something, they wouldn't be able to get him in Sinnoh, unless he was specifically wanted in Sinnoh. Matt had learned about it in school. Because of World Council Edict 132, Amendment 3, Appendix 8, law applies to the continent its set in. It wasn't illegal to steal those bells in Sinnoh. It was in Johto, but not in Sinnoh.

"Actually, not in Johto either. That tower, and everything in it, was true public property. It was owned by all citizens of Johto," said a familiar voice. Matt turned to see the boy from before. "You were free to take anything you wanted from it. They were actually committing a crime by not letting you in. What has kept it in there all this time was religious superstition."

Matt was at a loss for words. He said the first thing that came to mind that would seem intelligent. "What religious superstition?"

The boy's smile seemed to say, "Good question." What he said was, "It has to do with the Legendary Pokemon named Ho-oh. You've probably heard of it, growing up in Ecruteak. Something along these lines, I believe.

" '_They soared the skies as king of peace,_

_Human and Pokemon survived as one,_

_Life and death were concerns of the least,_

_And worry's home was none._

_Two towers built to show their tie,_

_Two towers were their homes,_

_One tower of tin in the raised to the sky,_

_One tower burned now, is three's tombs._

_Greed and power, humans' desires,_

_They wanted legends tamed,_

_They stormed the bronze, with sticks of fires,_

_And it burned, went down in flames._

_With a cry, given up on us,_

_One sleeps upon the waves,_

_But the other retaliated upon the fuss,_

_Three Pokemon it saved._

_Before it left, upon rainbow wing,_

_Bells it made for human kind,_

_Be they taken by anything,_

_The beasts shall lose their mind. _

_Bond broken, trust shaken, they shall hunt,_

_And not stop until they find,_

_The bells of peace, that they want,_

_The bells that keep peace tied."_

Matt no longer had any words to lose. He'd never heard anyone say the entire thing by memory. He'd only heard it once or twice, during a festival that came every few years, and by a priest who had to read it off of an old book. "Yeah, I know," he started, "its kind of corny sometimes, and unclear in others, but it tells a good story none the less. You see, it starts out by telling about this peaceful world, where humans and Pokemon lived in peace. They built two towers to show this. Tin and Bronze. Two legendary birds supposedly lived on top of each. But humans got greedy when they began to tame Pokemon, and went up one tower to catch one of the birds. They ended up burning it down. Three innocent Pokemon died with it. The Pokemon atop the Bronze Tower flew away and is now said to live in the seas. The Pokemon on the Tin Tower supposedly brought the three Pokemon back to life and flew away from humanity, leaving those bells to keep the peace."

Matt was confused. What were the beasts that would lose their mind? Surely not the Pokemon… right?

"Don't worry about it," said the boy. "Pokemon are just like humans when it comes to these kinda things. They keep them there for tradition. No Pokemon is going to get mad at you for taking them. No normal Pokemon anyway."

"What do you mean no-"

He was gone. Matt was tired now. From what he could tell, they boy was saying that it wasn't a big deal. He pushed away any doubts he had about the boy's message and went back to making sure he was ready once he got to Sinnoh. Going back to Ecruteak would be a waste of time and money. This was going to happen anyway, Matt figured, so why drag it out? They'd have a bank in Snowpoint, so he could withdraw his savings. He left all his clothes at home, so he'd have to get more of those. He'd need some food for the rest his trip, and he already had potions and repels. And most of all, Matt needed to make sure his fiancé' knew that he was coming. He'd have to call his parents later and make up some excuse for why he came early. He was good at that kind of stuff. But his parents later. His fiancé now. He opened the book and looked up her name. Julia Thomson. He thumbed in the numbers and held the phone to his ear, looking into the screen.

Late that evening, Julia returned home. Her mom had still not come back from "grandma's." She flung her wet clothes into the hamper and got into the shower. Their Gyarados search had been a bust. All they found was clear water, filled with nothing but Magikarp. Julia had kneeled down by the lake, to watch them swim, and Markus had tried to lift her skirt with a stick. She then reached behind her, grabbed his hand and, standing up, threw him into the lake. While she had been laughing at him, he managed to grab her foot and yank her in too. That led to a splash fight that lasted a while, whilst Piplup and Turtwig had a civilized conversation by the edge of the lake. After that they ate on the grass while the sun went down, not saying a word to each other.

Julia scrubbed the shampoo into her scalp, using the shampoo her brother didn't mix with honey. She was still angry at Markus. He really ruined it. Why would he even do something like that? Firstly, why would he look at her? She was already engaged. He was too. They weren't the ones who would spend their lives together. They didn't love each other. Love was marriage. She was supposed to love Matt Digeranimo. She did love Matt. He was supposed to love who he was engaged with. Then, why would he protect her like that… Why would he hold her… Why, after she punched him, would he want to hold her and touch her again… And why would she have seen him like she did… Why did they almost kiss… And like that, she remembered the face of her hero, as he opened his eyes, holding her.

No. Two weeks until she got married. Two weeks until her real knight came to her. Two simple weeks. She stepped out of the shower and wrapped herself in towel. She tiptoed, dripping a bit still, into her room, put her pajamas on, and headed downstairs to watch TV before bed. She walked through the kitchen, grabbing herself a soda and reading the two notes on the fridge, one from her brother saying he was sleeping over a friend's house, and one from her mother saying she was going to be gone another day. Sighing, she walked into the living room, fell onto the couch, and turned the TV on.

"Today, in Oreburg, three baby Glameow were rescued from a rock slide…" Julia changed the channel. "So no one told you life was gonna be this way…" Click. "Sinnoh's Funniest Videos!" Click… Click… Click… She turned the TV off. Nothing on. She sat there for a second, head back, just relaxing. Then the phone rang.

Sighing, she walked over to the phone screen and answered it.

"Hello?"

No answer. The screen stayed blank.

"Hello?"

No answer. Still blank.

"Markus, is this you again? Cause I told you last week not to-"

"H-hello, this is Matthew Digeranimo, is Julia there!" someone on the other end said very quickly. The screen turned on and showed the feed of her fiancé.

"M-Matt?" Julia replied. "Really?" Her want for this moment for years made her forget Markus. Replaced by the thought of Matt, her waiting, yearning. He was her knight that she'd hoped for all these years. The face in the picture on her nightstand that she looked at every night before she went to bed.

Matt's feelings of his current situation also vanished, were concealed by new feelings. This girl… Julia… was she the same one he'd seen years ago? She had blossomed into this woman he now saw before him. Had Matt been nervous before, that was nothing to how he was now.

"Y-yeah, its me. I… I called to say I was…" he stopped to get his courage up, "to say I was coming early."

Early. Julia ran this word over in her mind. Sooner than later. Sooner than two weeks. "Really?" she said excitedly.

Was she really the shy girl he'd seen? Who said barely a word to him while he blabbed on about Pokemon and monster trucks and whatever else he was interested in when he was eleven. "Yeah… I'm actually on the boat over now. I'll be in Snowpoint by tomorrow afternoon."

Julia could barely contain her excitement. "Really? Tomorrow? Wow! I mean, oh my god, I've got to get ready! I can't wait to meet you in person!" So much to do now. She had to get everything ready tonight. All her clothes, her trainer bag, oh, and she had to tell her mother, Ben, Piplup, Markus…

And it all came back. What had happened that day. Her hero. Their near kiss. Her feelings for Markus. His for her. Were they real? Did she want… no, they weren't real. Julia had feelings like that for the man on the screen in front of her, and only him. A man she'd never once met in person. A man she'd talked to twice. And Markus obviously didn't care for her. Only for what was under her skirt. Something that wasn't his to care about. It belonged to Julia, and Matt… wait, did it belong to Matt? She'd never really thought that Matt may be like Markus, may want those kind of things. Thoughts continued to multiply in Julia's head, most of which that scared her.

At first Matt had waited for her to continue screaming. Then he waited for her to say something. Five minutes had passed, and nothing had happened. So, he decided it was up to him to restart the conversation. "Um… we're meeting in Hearthome, right?"

This sentence dragged Julia back out of her thoughts. She stuttered to reply. "Huh? Wha- Uh… y-yeah! Yeah, we're meeting in Hearthole- I mean Hearthome! Hearthome!" Julia sighed. Narrowly missed being awkward. Hopefully. Hurry, she thought, save it, save it! "So, um, how's the boat ride over? Not getting sea sick, I hope."

Don't be awkward, Matt thought to himself. "Uh, no, I'm feeling okay. Its pretty cool being on a ship. I've never been on one before. The cabins are kinda small though. I have to share with two other passengers." Not too bad. Breezy. That was breezy.

"Really?" Julia replied. Don't say something stupid. Don't say something stupid. "I hope its not that bad." That wasn't stupid. That was good. Not stupid.

"Nah, its fine," said Matt. "If I hadn't switched tickets I would have had a better room, but its cool."

"So…" Julia was getting comfortable talking with him. Getting smoother. Good. "Why did you decide to come early?"

"Er…" What was he supposed to say? He still didn't want people to know about the boy and the bells. They would think he was crazy. So, he told another half-truth. "I… I just couldn't wait any more." Sappy. Lovey-dovey. She'll never believe it. I just cut my nose off despite my face. But at least it was half true. Now, since he'd seen her now, he did want to meet her. He looked forward to it now. And instead of the reaction Matt thought she'd give, Julia blushed.

"Really?" He wanted to see her. That cleared all fear from her mind. He did want to see her. As much as she wanted to see him. "You really came early to see me?"

This almost seemed worse than the reaction he thought he would get. "Y-yeah, you know. I mean, I've only heard things about you my whole life. I…" Hurry, man, think, think! "I wanted to meet you myself, so I can see all of those things, you know, for myself. To get to, you know, know you."

He likes you, she thought. He wants to get to know you, like you want to get to know him! Tell him! Tell him! "Um… me too!" Smooth. Not. "I want to get to know you too."

It worked? It worked! Matt did a small victory dance in his head. But better not to risk it anymore tonight. "So… its getting kinda late now. Can I call you tomorrow?"

Julia looked at the clock. It was already ten of ten. Time flies when you have an extremely awkward conversations. But he still wanted to talk to her. "Yeah, sure. Around noonish?" By then I'll be all ready to go and just about to walk out the door.

"That's cool," he said. With time zone changes, he estimated that'd be about ten or eleven, but that was fine. He'd be getting up early tomorrow anyway. "So we'll talk tomorrow?" Matt smiled.

"Can't wait!" Julia smiled back.

"Bye."

"Bye."

Then both hung up at the same time. At that moment, they both thought the same thing. I can't wait. Matt walked back to his cabin, a new energy in him. Firstly, stealing the bell had been no big deal. That was a huge Aipom off his back. It'd still be his secret though, lest he be thought insane. Secondly, his fiancé was exactly what he wished her to be. Energetic, beautiful, kind, a nice rack… And he thought for a second why that came to mind. Hormones maybe? The media? The horrors of peer pressure? Whatever it was, he kept the rack comment in the back of his mind and focused on the first three. Energetic, beautiful, and kind.

When he got back to his cabin, both Jasmine and Cheryl were asleep. Chansey had rolled herself into a ball at the foot of Cheryl's bed. What looked like a cannonball sat by Jasmine while she slept. Ignoring it for now, he climbed into bed and slept, his last thought of Julia.

Meanwhile. Julia had two thoughts replaying in her mind. He's hot, and he likes me. He's hot, and he likes me. He's hot, and he likes me. She repeated this to herself while she got everything together she'd need for her journey to Hearthome City. Bag, potion, change of clothes, another change of clothes, bathing suit, tent, antidote, another bathing suit incase we go swimming more than once, another change of clothes, Pokeballs, some pajamas, a sleeping bag, another change of clothes, a clothesline, some makeup, feminine things, another change of clothes, good luck charm, food, another bathing suit in case I don't feel like wearing the other two, sandals, towels, soap, shampoo, another change of clothes, repel, an alarm clock, MP3 player, shoes to go with each of the changes of clothes, laptop, laptop charger, solar charger for laptop, latest issue of her favorite magazine, another change of clothes, some tissues, toilet paper, and finally her hat. She zipped these things up in her small trainer bag. It was amazing how small they could make things nowadays. He's hot, and he likes me. She repeated this over and over again, until she climbed into her bed, looked at his picture once more, and closed her eyes.

_"All seems like its going well," he said, sitting down. The Being kept quiet, glowing a deep blue. He sighed, knowing it was already feeling the pain. It had no tear ducts, so to show its pain it became water. _

_He tried to comfort it. "The pawn still isn't ready yet. There's still plenty of time left until it happens. But the game has started. All that's left is to play it." It let out a growl of anguish. He realized this wasn't a portion of the pain it would eventually feel. The pain of the moment when the game comes to an end. _

_But he also felt its excitement. It kept a hand near the plate of flames. The Being always has fun playing the game, no matter how much it hurt. Already, its fur on the back of its neck stood in excitement. It knew the game inside and out, knew its rules and fouls, and waited constantly for the next level. He, on the other hand, didn't know what to expect. He just did as he was told. He, in truth, was one of the Being's hands now. He moved the pieces, according to how the Being told him to. He considered it an honor and a blessing. _

_"So, how will we know if its time yet?" he asked the Being. The Being didn't answer. It instead yawned and put its head down, taking its hand off of the plate of waves, returning to normal. This obviously meant something. His damn sense of humor. He laid down near the edge, putting his hands behind his head. He closed his eyes for the first time in a while. _

_The Being opened one eye to look at him. Touching the plate of minds, it slowly pushed him of the edge. About ten feet into the darkness, the Being estimated, he started screaming. It counted to ten, then lifted its head up to look at the ceiling of nothingness. He appeared in the ceiling suddenly, and fell all the way back down. This process continued five more times, before he finally grabbed the edge on the way down. He pulled himself up and looked at the Being. It looked at him and nodded. _

_"Seus. Ut est vindico.." said the Being. He stared at the Being for a bit, but then got the point. _

_"That's a decent roll." he told it. _

END NOTE: Not bad. It's long, in my opinion. I can split it into two parts if you want me to. Anyway, back to my notes. The mystery dude is supposed to look like Lucas, the male DP character. Julia is supposed to look like Dawn. Markus looks like the rival in DP. And, yes, Matt is supposed to look like Gold. And if you wonder where I got Matt's last name, it's a variation of my friend's last name. And please, review. In my opinion, none of my characters are very developed.


	3. First Roll: Six Chosen

The Arcean Reflex

Bulbafreak9000

Author's Note: Whooah! I got a great review by marco2050, and I'm raring to start writing the newest chapter of this fic! I hope the people on The Pokemon Tower like this fic, because as I type I'm deleting my precious IE7 to downgrade to IE6 to get it on there. DAMN YOU CRUCIAL ERROR IN IE7 THAT DOESN'T ALLOW ME TO POST THIS ON THE POKEMON TOWER UNLESS I DOWNGRADE, DAMN YOU!!!... regains composure Okay, so anyway, I've noticed some slight errors in my last chapter, which I'll be fixing soon… hopefully. Just tiny mistakes, like me misspelling Fiore, putting an h in Sara's name, some her/here mix-ups, stuff like that. I promise you though, I'll do my best to make this chapter mistake free, be it I does having to go ovre this fifty-two tiems! Now, onto the fic!

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FIRST ROLL: SIX CHOSEN

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As his Pidgeot lowered onto the island, he could do little besides stare at the wreckage of what used to be Cinnibar, and wonder what could have done this. Volcanic ash covered what little could be recognized of the small research village. An emergency team of fire type Pokemon, mostly consisting of the former leader Blaine's Pokemon, had come an hour beforehand to clear out as much ash from the air as they could, and to find any who didn't escape in time. Thankfully, all citizens had gotten off the island in time and were safely on Seafoam Island. That wasn't the problem that he was investigating.

According to the research of the local scientists, this volcano was dormant, and as it had blown its top less than a hundred years prior, there shouldn't have been another eruption for at least another two hundred years. This is the reason he was here. Previously the Indigo League Champion, current gym leader, and grandson to the great and late Prof. Oak, he involved himself extensively in the scientific community. In doing so, he learned more about Pokemon than most ever do. And as he looked around the island, he knew that it was no force of nature that did this.

Recalling Pidgeot, he fumbled though his backpack to find Umbreon's ball. Its strong sense of smell could lead him to anything left alive on the island.

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An alarm screeched into the young man's ear, making him scream and hurl the covers up into the air. Angrily, he grabbed the alarm clock and threw it out the window. All the neighbors heard a teenaged girl scream and fall as it hit her on the head, but he was too tired to notice. Too much video gaming, he thought to himself as he rose from his bed. Putting his feet on the floor, something squeaked loudly. Quickly jumping back into bed, he saw that it was a rubber Pellipper on the floor. He kicked it under his bed and waded through the chaotic mess that was his room over to his closet. He looked in it and found that there were no clothes on the hangars, and the only thing on the floor was an old board game and a hand held vacuum cleaner, ironically gathering dust. Some would have noticed this irony, but he didn't. He had no time to. Yawning, he found the clothes he wore yesterday and pulled them on, flattening his hair to look halfway presentable. He ran down the stairs like a raging Stantler and strutted into the kitchen, where a dark-haired girl and a battered alarm clock sat waiting for him.

"So you figured out how to get that thing to shut up? Good for you, Julia! You'll have to show me how to do that one of these days." Marcus laughed, reaching into the cabinet and grabbing an open bag of cereal. He took a puff out of the bag and chucked it into the air, catching it with his mouth. "Stale," he said, "Yet satisfying. Say, could you grab me a bowl?" he asked Julia as he raided the fridge to find the milk.

Julia dug through all of the cupboards, searching for a bowl. This one was empty. That one had plastic containers. The one after that had a ceramic Abomasnow dressed up like Santa Claus. The next one had so many pots and pans in it that it wouldn't shut. "Where do you keep the bowls?" she asked, going back to the cabinet with the Abomasnow. "And is this an antique?"

Marcus sighed, walked over to the dishwasher and opened it. Julia could smell some kind of mold as he pulled out a large cooking bowl and a wooden spoon. He went to the sink and ran them under the boiling water tap, then under cool water.

"You keep your dishes in _there_?" she said, holding her nose and kicking the dishwasher door shut, as Marcus had left it open.

"Well, yeah. Where else?" he said, pouring his cereal into the bowl and dumping the milk in. He clicked on a small TV on the counter and turned on cartoons.

"Why does it stink so bad?" she asked as she plopped down on the chair beside him.

He shrugged. "I guess it's because after I'm done I just put the stuff back in, and it doesn't get washed by the next morning."

"Then why don't you just turn the dishwasher on?"

"I don't know how."

Julia scoffed. Don't know how to turn the dishwasher on? That was crap. She stood up and looked at the ancient beast that was Marcus' dishwasher. It had wooden panels covering it, a sign of the early seventies. Large knobs and silver buttons were also abundant, labeled things like "Super-wash", "Dry-o-matic", "Hot-o-rama", "Cool boogaloo", and, most confusing of all "Poli-whirl". Squinting to read all the small words that ran around the knobs, then stuck her hands out to turn one. Markus jumped out of his seat and dove to stop her, slow motion yell and all, but instead crashed face-first into the dishwasher. This did, however, stop Julia from touching it, as she looked down at him.

"Are you retarded or something?" she asked as he kneeled on the floor, rubbing his head.

"You aren't supposed to touch the knobs!" he yelled, standing up. He shielded the dishwasher from Julia, a look of gravity on his face. She, however, scoffed.

"Why not? It's just a dishwasher. I can figure out how to work this thing in five minutes." She reached around to touch a button behind Markus, and he slapped her hand.

"I'm telling you, you don't want to touch this thing! It is the essence of evil! Only my dad can work it! Otherwise, it goes crazy."

Julia raised her eyebrow. "Crazy? What do you mean crazy?"

"I mean crazy! Here, I'll give you a sample!" He turned around and messed with the knobs, pressing things that looked like they were needed in a regular wash and turning a knob to an assumed regular setting. He set a timer on it for an hour, then pushed a large green button that said GO on it. He then dragged Julia over to the other side of the room. And they watched. For almost a full minute. Then, when Julia was tired of playing this game, she pulled away from the hold Markus had on her sleeve and strutted over to the machine.

"This thing isn't evil. Please. It's just a dumb, thirty year old dishwasher," she laughed. At that, the dishwasher burst open, sending bubbles and water everywhere. Julia fell to the ground as the machine door hit her in the back, but crawled to one of the counters and pulled herself up. A plate shot out of it and hit the refrigerator, wedging itself in the door. Markus ducked as three forks lodged themselves into the cabinet door, inches away from where his head was. He dived at Julia and pulled her to the ground as a rogue steak knife flew towards her. She looked behind her as she fell and watched it cut into the wall. After making sure she'd stay close to the ground, he stood and swam through the bubbles, dodging a tea cup to his liver and a shot glass to his forehead. He did what he could to push the dishwasher door up and then pushed the off button. He barrel-rolled towards Julia and covered her head as the phantom dishwasher convulsed one last time, sending bubbles to ceiling before it stopped. Both Markus and Julia looked up as one last bubble rose from the machine, floated to the middle of the room, and then popped.

Standing up, Markus let out a groan.

"Don't worry Markus." Julia said, standing up and putting her hand on her shoulder. "It was my fault. I'll clean it up and explain to your dad."

He looked at her like she was crazy. "What do you mean this mess? The bubbles'll pop, and the water will dry up in a few days. All I have to do is put all the dishes back into the dishwasher, clean up the fragments, and tape up the fridge again and I'm fine."

"Then what were you groaning about?" she asked, puzzled.

"My cereal!" he cried, sitting back down. He scooped a large layer of bubbles off of the top of the bowl, and then wiped his spoon off with the inside of his shirt. He took a bite and deemed it eatable, then wiped the bubbles from the TV and went back to his usual business.

Ignoring the fact that he was actually eating the cereal, she sat back down next to him and thought of what to say. "You know," she drew in a deep breath, "you saved my life, just now."

He looked and her and thought back to a few minutes ago. "Yeah, I guess I did," he replied, then looked back at the TV.

"It was pretty brave what you did. I mean, risking yourself to turn off that thing, and then covering me to make sure I didn't get hurt."

"Eh," he shrugged. Julia sighed, trying to bring up the strength to tell him. Instead, she sat down beside him.

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Quilava sat by the side of the boat, looking down at the water. He watched as curious neon fish jumped in the waves of the boat. This was the first he'd ever seen of that kind of Poke'mon. He called out to it, but it didn't hear him over the waves.

Meanwhile, Matt sat in his swim trunks on a beach chair, eyes shut. Next to him lay Cheryl, in a green one piece bathing suit, on her back. Chansey sat a table underneath an umbrella, enjoying the peace.

"So, Cheryl," began Mat, not moving, "Why you going to Sinnoh?"

"Me?" she replied lifting her head to look at him. "Rumor is there's some pretty rare Poke'mon being sighted all over the continent. Where there's rare Poke'mon, there's usually treasure."

"Treasure, huh?" he chuckled. "You don't seem like the type who'd be hunting treasure."

She put her head back down. "Yeah, I know. I don't really like it much, but everyone in my family does it, so I do it too. Not to mention, licensed treasure hunters don't need to get engaged, because they travel around a lot."

Matt found two things about that strange. "Okay, firstly, I thought you were one of those romantic girly girls. Secondly, you need a license to treasure hunt?"

"It's so the government can take taxes from the money you get for selling treasures to museums. And really, I'd love to get married. Just not to the guy my family wanted me to." Cheryl sighed, looking off of the deck towards the seas.

"Do tell," Matt said, opening an eye to see if he was tan yet.

"Well," she said, turning over and sitting up, "I never wanted to be a treasure hunter. I was hoping to be some sort of botanist or something. That did not go over well with my parents when I told them. They looked at me like I just said I was gay or something. Not that there's anything wrong with that."

"Of course not," he replied.

"So, anyway, they figured out a way to do it. They arranged me to marry this unbearable macho jackass named Buck. Tried to grab my butt the first time I met him, so I punched him in the stomach. He fell like a brick."

Matt let out a short laugh and turned over.

"There was no way I was gonna marry that bastard. So, I did what I had to do. I took the treasure hunter test. Passed with flying colors, and then left home. Now I'm eighteen, unmarried, and I haven't been home for two years." She turned to him and smiled.

"Wow," he said, looking at her. "You're proof that first impressions aren't always true."

She winked at him. "I try and stay ahead of judgments. Then, people can't judge you."

"Insightful."

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It had been a half hour, and still Julia hadn't been able to tell him. She tried to look at him, but he didn't look at her. Instead, he continued to watch TV. She looked away now, thinking of what she was about to say, and what his reaction would be. "I… I came over today to tell you something."

Now he looked at her. Swallowing a large mouthful of cereal, he saw it wasn't good news. At least not good for him. "Did something happen?" he asked, pushing away his bowl.

"No… well, kinda. My…" she stopped, forming the right words in her mind. "My fiancé called last night. He's coming earlier than expected."

"H-how much earlier?" he asked, lump forming in his throat.

"Well," she answered back, "I'm leaving today for Hearthome, to pick him up."

"Today…" that word echoed in his mind for a bit after he said it. Then his hair fell over his head, shadowing his eyes.

"Markus…" her lips barely said, looking at him.

Suddenly, he burst out laughing, smile wide on his face. "That's so awesome!" he yelled.

"No, don't..." Julia started, but Markus cut her off.

"No, I mean it. I'm really happy for you." She could tell he was lying. He didn't want her to, but she did.

"Markus, I know we… we've always…" she didn't know how to put it.

"We've always been friends. We always will be." He opened his arms and embraced her, and she held him tight, her head on his shoulder. "You having a husband won't change that. Hell, me and… my… fiancé…" For the life of him, he could think of her name, now, looking into Julia's eyes.

"Leah," said Julia, too worked up to be angry at Markus for forgetting one of her friend's names.  
"Yeah, me and Leah are getting married in two months. Would that have changed our friendship any?"

She didn't reply. Would it have? Only recently had she had doubts about how big her relationship with Markus was. He was the kind of person who lived for the moment, who didn't worry about the future, who acted on instinct. He was the one boy in grade school who actually talked to a girl, much less hung out with one, to the extent that Markus did. They grew up on the same street, played every summer, and talked every day. He started with the whole perverted thing in small strides over the past few years, and Julia hung out with him just a bit less because of it, but he was still the same Markus. She always had told him everything. New toys, good hiding spot, her first pimple, her thoughts on what her future husband would be, and how much she wanted the day to come when she left to meet him and would never come back. She could not describe her feelings for him. It wasn't friendship, it was more than that. It wasn't love, it couldn't be love. Love was marriage. You loved who you were married to, and then you loved your parents and children. This feeling didn't have a word, but it was there. And once she was married, she'd never be able to feel it again.

They sat there together in the embrace for a bit, and she cried on his shoulder. Markus couldn't stand her crying. When he cried, it made her cry, and that's why he stopped crying sometime around third grade, even if he got hurt, beaten, or emotionally scarred. He stopped crying all together, because he didn't want her to cry. And here she was, crying in his arms. And it made him cry. Usually he'd tell a joke, make a funny comment, do something that in some way makes her laugh. But he could think of nothing at this moment as he held her. He had no way to make it better, for the first time.

"Things are going to change, aren't they?" he asked, holding her tighter. She nodded, without a word. A tear dropped from his face to hers. "I don't want it to," he whispered to her. "I don't want it to."

"Me neither," she whispered back, her words muffled by his shirt.

"And…" his voice shook, "It won't ever be the same again, will it?"

"No," she responded. She tightened her grip on him.

"Does…" Tears streamed down Markus' cheeks. He could feel Julia's on his skin. "Does it have to happen?"

Julia picked her head off of his shoulder. The tears started to stop. "Yeah, it does." She knew it did. He couldn't believe it.

"No," he said. "It can't be. We… we can be together."

She began crying again. "I wish we could, Markus, I do…" She looked into his deep green eyes again, these wonderful eyes of the man that she felt so much about, and who felt so much about her. This was her true hero, she knew it, and it hurt her that this would be the last time she'd ever see him the way she did now. And he looked into her eyes, the eyes of the girl he tried to protect from everything he felt now, only these eyes were strong. They showed her maturity, and it made him all the more miserable. They moved slowly together into a deep, heart-wrenching kiss, their emotions surging into each other, their tongues slightly probing each other's mouths. And there they stood, kissing, expressing to each other for the first time, and the last, the unknown feeling that they both felt.

And when their lips broke apart, Julia's turned away from him. He looked at her, now heartbroken. "But we can't. Because the things we feel for each other…" she tried to be strong now. It was the most important time for her to be strong, to be an adult in her life. "It sounds like everything I've ever heard about love." He tried to hold her again, to go back to the kiss, to delay this any longer, but she pulled away. She continued, not letting him see any more of her tears now. "And… and we can't love each other. I'm supposed to feel this way… to love Matt, and you… you with…" she started to fall apart again, "you with Leah."

"No… no… Julia…" he tried to put his hand on her shoulder, to have the least bit of contact with her at this moment, but she wouldn't let him.

"Goodbye, Markus," she said to him. He watched her walk away, moved towards the door, and then, he watched her slip on a patch of bubbles on the floor. He motioned towards her, to help her up, but she got up before he could get to her, and left without looking back at him. He stood there staring at the door, until his eyes grew too tired, and he went back up to his room and slept.

_bulbabulbabulbabulba_

"So, Chimchar, what's next on the agenda?" he asked the monkey on his shoulder. It put its hand to its chin for a second, thinking, then dived in his backpack, rummaged through potions and such, then pulled out a Pokeball. "That's right," he said, remembering what to do next. "This one goes to the Hinderer, right?" The monkey nodded. "Then another one goes to the Pillar, one for the Witness, and one for the Pawn. That's all of them, right?" It shook its head and dove into the bag again, taking two more balls out. "Oh, yeah," he said, scratching the back of his head. "I forgot about those two."

He walked through the crowded city streets, deciding where to go first. So much to do, so little time.

_bulbabulbabulbabulba_

Julia sat by Lake Verity, looking over the calm waters. Nothing moved on the surface of the lake. It was as though time were still. What she would give if time were in fact still. If she could have waited just a bit more, had a few more days with Markus. She looked towards the shore, where just yesterday they'd left their footprints in the sand. They were gone now. There was no evidence now that they had even been here yesterday. No evidence that they had been there at all. No evidence that they had swum through the lake, ran through the shallows, picnicked here on the grass.

Piplup sat beside her, looking up at her every so often, then back at the lake, knowing she could do nothing. Julia looked at her Poketch, and it was almost two o'clock. She closed her eyes, trying to remember all the memories she'd had here, before she left for her new life. Across the lake, she heard splashing. Opening her eyes, she saw a couple spreading a large blanket on the ground. Their two Nidoran, male and female, respectively, ran to the edge of the water and looked it. The two humans sat and unpacked a basket, and as the woman lifted a sandwich, Julia saw a tiny glimmer on her hand. A ring. As she watched them, she realized the man had one too. They were married, probably newly-weds, as young as they were. Of course, not everyone got married as early as Julia was. The limit to when you could put it off was twenty, but it was always decided by the parents.

The couple was having a nice time. Every so often they'd give each other a quick kiss, murmuring lovey-dovey things to the other, making him or her giggle and blush. Eventually they got into the water and swam a bit, splashing each other playfully. After having enough of that, that sat on the shore and looked into each others eyes, until they kissed passionately. And as she watched, she could only think of Markus. Eight years ago she lost her first tooth here, when she and Markus were throwing a ball back and forth. Five years ago, Markus broke his arm falling out of a tree, and she had to help him back to Twinleaf. Two years ago the Prof. brought she and Markus here to give them Piplup and Turtwig. Six months ago, Markus had his birthday here, and everyone from Twinleaf came out here and they had a big picnic. Just yesterday, she nearly kissed him. An hour ago, she did kiss him. She took a big sigh and stood. She'd had enough of Lake Verity to last the entire journey to Hearthome. Hopefully, once she got there, she wouldn't need it anymore. She walked back to Route 201, Piplup hopping close behind.

_bulbabulbabulbabulba_

Markus woke up with a start. He sleepily looked around, and saw that Turtwig had fallen off the bed. He now lay on his back, kicking and struggling to turn himself over. Markus hung one of his feet off the bed and tapped one side of Turtwig's shell with his big toe, causing him to flip back over. Deciding it was better to stay on the floor, Turtwig crawled under Markus' bed. Markus lay back down, but knowing he couldn't go back to sleep, got up minutes later. He stood and walked to his desk, which in truth was but a stand for the television he played videogames on, so that he could watch TV at the same time on his other TV. Opening a drawer, he felt around through all the old wires and crumpled scraps of paper, looking for the perfectly preserved document that he'd gotten months ago. He laid it on the desk and looked at it for a bit, studying the many lines that were to be signed to make it official. Already seven had been signed, and only one remained blank.

Months ago he had gone down to the courthouse himself and requested this form. It was the form to legally change an arranged marriage. Markus had gotten his parents', Leah and her parents', and Julia's mother's signature already, and he himself had signed it. All that had been left was for Julia to sign it. But it was too late now. He crumpled the paper up into a little ball and threw it over his shoulder, hoping for it to land in the trashcan. It missed.

A little while ago, none of this mattered. He had all the time in the world to tell Julia. Markus mentally kicked himself. He had to wait, didn't he? Another thing he put off to the last minute and it backfired on him. The next time he'd see her, if he ever did again, she'd be married. He slammed his head down onto the desk and just stayed there for a while.

"Oh, come on, you aren't really just going to let her go like that, are you?" said a mysterious voice behind him. Markus swiveled around to see a young man, maybe a little older than himself, standing in his room, tossing the crumpled document up in the air and catching it repeatedly.

"What the hell are you doing in my house?" Markus yelled, reaching behind him for something, anything, blunt or sharp to protect himself with. "How did you get in?"

The guy smiled slyly. "I came in through you're bedroom window."

"My bedroom window is shut and locked from the inside. Has been since I fell asleep earlier today," replied Markus. "Not only that, but I'm the only one home right now and all the other windows and doors are locked."

Note to self, the young man thought, this guy is smarter than the other one. "Okay then," he said, putting his hands up, "you got me. I didn't come in through a window, door, heating vent, etcetera, etcetera."

"Then how did you-"

"Doesn't matter how I did it," he interrupted, "All that matters is that I'm here to help you."

Markus raised an eyebrow. "With what?"

"Getting Julia back, of course." He smiled.

"How do you-"

"Didn't I already tell you, how I do things is none of your concern. All you need to know is that I'm helping you." He began to unfold the document and read it over. "Almost did it, huh? Procrastinated just a little to long, and you missed your shot. Tsk, tsk, tsk."

Markus couldn't believe what was happening. Who was this guy in front of him, ordering him around, insulting him? "Who are you?" he growled.

The young man looked surprised, and then gave it a bit of thought. "I guess you can call me… Metatron. Yeah, Metatron will do fine."

"Metatron?" asked Markus, "Like the Decepticon?"

Sighing, the guy tried again. "Okay… how about Trey? I think that will work."

What's with this guy, Markus wondered. He had to admit he was slightly intrigued now about his offer. "Okay… Trey… how can you help me?"

Trey smiled again, before taking a strange Pokeball out of his pocket and tossing it to Markus. The ball itself seemed to be made of white stone, and it was covered in strange hieroglyphics, unintelligible to Markus. "What's in here?" he asked.

"Help," Trey replied. "Not to be used until the right time though. Mostly because it won't open until then."

"Then how is it supposed to help me?" exclaimed Markus.

"You'll see, you just have to wait. Until then," he handed Markus the document, "go find Julia. Right about now she should be in Sandgem. If you hurry, you can catch her before nightfall."

Markus looked down at the paper. It and become perfect again, not a wrinkle on it. "How did you-" Markus looked up, and Trey was gone. Turtwig stuck its head out from beneath the bed and gave a questioning chirp. Looking at the paper, then the Pokeball, Markus stood.

**BULBABULBABULBA**

_"Okay, I delivered one of the keys," Trey said, casually walking up the steps towards It. It gave a questioning grunt. _

_"It was the white one. I still have the other five to deliver. I figured I'd check in," he replied, sitting on the top step. He looked at the Being as it sat, eyes shut, as usual. Trey was amazed by Its patience. "First few levels aren't too fun I guess." It shook his head. The plates that surrounded it, thirteen in all, were equal distances away from it, surrounding it in a circle. It sometimes chose one at random to touch, changing it the color of the plate, and then withdrawing his leg, changing back to normal. _

_He changed his focus from the Being to the nothingness. What he had fallen into before… that wasn't the nothing. Instead it was a tunnel the Being created for the roll. The nothingness… how he wondered what it was like, whether he'd still be conscious, his one separate being, or if he would become one with the nothingness…_

_Suddenly, the Being let out a loud roar. He turned, and saw It touching the plate of thunder as It dropped to Its knees. He got up and ran towards it. Mid-step, he hit, face first, into an invisible wall It had put up. Trey got to his feet and tried again. As he hit this time, he felt a shock go through his body. He realized the Being did not want his help. He had nothing to do but stand there and watch as It suffered. Pain went across Its face, and it let out a loud screech. Trey covered his ears and fell to his knees. He closed his eyes as the screech echoed painfully through his brain. Then, as suddenly as it had started, it stopped. He looked up to see the Being panting, still on its knees. After a few minutes of recovery, It stood and looked into the darkness, opening its eyes. _

_"Festinavis, servi." It said to him. He bowed and started down the staircase. _

**BULBABULBABULBA**

Author's Notes: This chapter is kinda messy, I realize that. It took forever to write too, because I stopped for the summer. I deviated from my original idea, and then back again, and then I kinda went back, with some changes. But, anyway, I had a lot of points where for the hell of it I made the character nameless, and I want to clarify a bit. The first one at the beginning is a new character, based on Gary from RBY. Sort of another little side story that'll run along the main one, like Trey & the Being. The second dude is of course Markus; I just wanted to do something from his point of view. The third is Trey, who only appeared three times this chapter, surprisingly. I made so many random references in this chapter. First, the part where Cheryl says that her parents "looked at me like I said I was gay or something" and then Matt says "No, of course not" (or something to that effect) was from this episode of Seinfeld I saw. Then I made a Transformers reference. I'm sure I made other ones, but I don't feel like going back and finding them. Anyway, R&R. If I get some good reviews, it may kick me back in gear. Till next time, this is Teh Bulba, out.


	4. First Roll: The First Second

The Arcean Reflex

By Bulbafreak9000

Author's Note: Chapter 3 Begins! I'm writing this before I post Chapter 2, just because I'm really bored at the moment and I don't have interweb at work (who'd expect a hotdog stand behind Home Depot to have interweb? Not to mention, freaking people bringing their entire freaking family here like its freaking McDonalds or something and ordering 12 hotdogs and 8 hamburgers and at least 22 sodas and it's only freaking one person working here! ME! But I digress). I'm actually planning for the chapter to be relatively short, but if its not, I'll blame it on reverse ADD. Anyway, onto the fic!

CHAPTER 3: THE FIRST SECOND

Trey leaned against a light post near the dock as he watched the cruise liner pull into the harbor. It was about time, he thought. He'd been waiting at least an hour in this freaking cold. A sailor rolled a small set of stairs on wheels over to the ship, and the passengers filed out. Trey found who he wanted. He snapped, and time froze. He walked forward, through the crowd of passengers, and touched a young man. He unfroze, accidentally walking into another frozen passenger.

"Hey Matt," said Trey, watching as the young man rubbed his head. "Have a nice cruise?"

"I guess," Matt replied. He still wasn't sure if he could trust this guy.

"Still have those bells?" Trey asked. Matt touched his pocket and felt the bells and gave a nod. "Good," said Trey. "Walk with me."

The two walked towards the Pokemon Center, time still frozen. Matt had not prepared for the snow, and was shivering from head to toe. As they entered the center, a gush of hot air spread over them. They sat down at a table, and Matt became very aware of how wet his pants legs were from the snow.

"So," Trey said, "I don't believe I've introduced myself yet. You can call me…" He stopped for a second, now weary for some reason to use the word Metatron. "Trey."

"So, Trey," said Matt, "Why are you following me, _how_ are you following me, and how can you freeze time like this?"

Trey leaned back in his chair. "So many questions," he chuckled. "So few answers that I'm allowed to give."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Matt asked, the volume of his voice rising slowly.

"Nothing, nothing," Trey replied, putting his feet up. "I guess I can answer a few of your questions though. Firstly, the reason I'm following you is to give you a present."

"Present?" Matt asked skeptically. "If you wanted to give me a present, why not just give it to me the other two times you we talked?"

"Wasn't the right time." He reached in his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. He put one in his mouth, lit it, then offered Matt one.

"No thanks," said Matt. "I don't smoke." Looking at Trey with a cigarette in his mouth, he raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you too young to smoke?"

"Nah," he answered. "I'm older than I look."

"How much older?"

"Doesn't matter," he said, putting the pack and the lighter back into his pocket. He then tapped his backpack with a swift motion of his hand, and Chimchar's head popped out. "Chimchar, the Pokeball for Matt." The Pokemon nodded, then dived back down into the pack, and brought up a Pokeball, which he handed to Trey, who then handed it to Matt.

Matt looked over the ball. It was a glossy blue, and was very cold for some reason, which he could tell was not the fact that Trey had just been in the cold for some time. He put his hands all over the surface of the ball, feeling the strange markings that circled it.

"You're gonna need that soon," said Trey, snapping his fingers.

"What do you-" started Matt as he looked up from the ball, but yet again Trey had disappeared into thin air. Suddenly, Matt heard screaming outside, and then a loud roar.

_bulbabulbabulbabulba_

The sun was beginning to set as Julia entered the peaceful town of Sandgem. Prof. Rowan's lab shone in the twilight, and far off was the quiet sound of waves. The bright light of the Pokemon Center was already breaking through what little darkness there was. To stay or not to stay, that was what Julia asked herself, as she passed by the quaint hospital. She probably wouldn't have the time to stay in every town she passed through, and Jubilife was only an hour and a half away on foot.

She walked on through the town until she came to Route 202. Wading carefully through the tall grass, Julia avoid wild Pokemon, careful not to disturb their nests. Every so often a light would shine in the grass, showing the appearance of a cute little Shinx. Normally she might have tried to catch it, being quite fond of the cute little Pokemon, but this time she left it be. A few times some trainers attempted to challenge her, but she declined, as her Piplup was safely asleep in her backpack. It was well after nightfall when she noticed the bright lights of Jubilife City.

After checking into the Pokemon Center, she flopped onto her bed in the small room, which was apparently over the Pokemon nursery, where she could hear young Pokemon cry. Ignoring them, she turned the television on. She flipped through the channels slowly. "In other Celebrity Pokemon News, Butterfree Spears has lost… beep The all new Pokefood Dispenser Deluxe! Now your pretty Pokemon… beep I can't do it all by myself, no-oh, I'm no Machamp… beep - and coming live, from VulpixNews, is the footage from Snowpoint, where… beep Let's play…"

Julia stopped and went back to the news. "- mysterious Pokemon has been attacking citizens indiscriminately. Attempts by authorities and Pokemon Trainers alike have failed, and the town is being ordered to evacuate. Here we have a live feed of the situation." The Pokemon moved so fast that the cameraman had trouble keeping up. Julia could barely tell what it was, and could barely see its color. Purple, maybe… no light blue… "There have been at least 8 humans wounded already, with serious frost bite from a very powerful Ice Beam. The Pokemon Center is in lockdown mode, opening its doors once every fifteen minutes to let a limited amount of people in."

Wasn't that where her fiancé was? Was he alright? Julia opened up the drawer on the nightstand, where the center kept a complementary phone book for each guest. Quickly she looked up the Snowpoint Center's phone number and dialed it on her cell. After two or three rings, she got a busy signal. Growling, she hung up the phone. Who else could she call…

"It seems a lone trainer is trying to exit the Center!" said the anchorwoman. Julia spun around. It was being filmed from so far up in the air that she couldn't tell who it was. "The trainer seems to have a Quilava following close behind him. He's running into the middle of the street, and looking around. Oh! He just dove down to the ground, dodging an Ice Beam from an unknown attacker."

It couldn't be him, Julia convinced herself. The chances of it being Matt were so slim, but she couldn't get the thought from her mind. "It seems we have obtained identification on the Trainer from an anonymous source. It seems his name is-" The screen went black, and the lights turned off. Julia sat in the near dark, a bit of light coming in from the closed curtains of the window from the almost set sun. After two minutes of silence, the lights returned, followed by a nurse announcing over an intercom that the power for the entire city had suddenly died. "The Center was currently on PikaPower," she declared, "This provides just enough power for lights, telephones, and a single PC to operate. All televisions, microwaves, refrigerators, and any other appliances will not be supplied with power. We apologize for this inconvenience, and assure you that the authorities are currently investigating the blackout. Thank you."

Julia pulled her knees up to her chin and wrapped her arms around them. Was Matt alright? That wasn't him, was it? She sighed and slid beneath the blankets, suddenly feeling a strong urge to go to sleep. As she fell asleep, her last thought was, "I wonder what he's doing right now…"

_bulbabulbabulbabulba_

Breathing heavily, Matt flattened himself against a wall. What was that thing? It was lightening fast, whatever it was. Every hair on his body stood from the cold, and even with Quilava right next to him, Matt found himself shivering. There was no sign of the monster this second, but it could be back at any time. He reached behind him into his backpack and pulled out Drowzee's and Gastly's Pokeballs. Pressing the buttons on both, they flew out of the balls in flashes of red. Drowzee sat on the ground, oblivious to the cold, and Gastly looked around, wondering what had happened to it. Drowzee looked up at her and let out a long "Drow…zee…" He then pointed to Matt and said, "Drow… Drowzee…" Gastly looked at Matt, eyes wide, then closed them, understanding.

"Okay, guys," said Matt, crouching down to be at eye level. "I'm not quite sure what we're up against. I'm going to assume its an Ice-type, but I can't be sure. Quilava," he said, looking at his faithful starter, "I need you to dig a "Go tunnel under the snow, out into the middle of the street from here. Gastly," he said, turning to the purplish gas ball at his side, "I want you to go with him, to tell him where he is. Pass through the ice, but try to keep out of sight. When you hit the asphalt, Quilava, melt away the bottom layers, leaving the top. Make the hole big too, at least five foot by five foot. When you're done, Quilava, get out of there, and Gastly, show me the exact spot where the hole is." The two Pokemon nodded, and after a quick Ember to melt the ice on the top, Quilava began to burrow.

"Okay, Drowzee," Matt said, standing. He reached back into his bag and grabbed a small length of rope. He tied part of it to his belt, and part to Drowzee's wrist. It shook its arm, showing its dissatisfaction. "Don't pull on it," Matt scolded. "Stay as close to me as possible, and when I tell you to use Teleport, I'll have where I want us to go in my mind. Read my thoughts, and you'll know where to go. Ready?" The Psychic Pokemon nodded uncertainly.

The two of them ran into the middle of the street, and then stood as still as possible. Where was it… He closed his eyes to concentrate on his hearing. A small scratching sound… that was Quilava digging. A muttering… Drowzee, next to him, chanting to concentrate its powers. Other than these two things, he only heard his own breath, and the wind… The wind…

"Teleport!" Matt yelled, and pictured an alley between the Pokemon Center and another building. Not a second after they disappeared, an Ice Beam hit that particular spot. From almost nowhere, a Pokemon appeared near it. Matt got a good look at it from his new location. It was blue, and quadrapedual, with a large, diamond shaped formation on its head. Behind it a mane of purple cloud blew from behind its head. It stuck its head in the air, sniffing the wind. Matt had seen this Pokemon before… He'd found a tablet with its picture on it in the Burnt Tower. "Suicune."

He didn't mean for the word to leave his lips. Immediately, Suicune looked directly at him. Their eyes locked for a moment, and Matt felt something shiver down his spine. The Pokemon turned from him and looked at the road beneath it. Almost like lightening, an Ice Beam shot down onto it, blowing a hole in the street. Gastly and Quilava stared up at the Suicune from in the hole. Gastly hung her head, seemingly in shame, and Quilava backed up and growled.

Without Matt telling him to, Drowzee teleported into the hole. He grabbed hold of Gastly, and Matt grabbed Quilava, his hands burning from its body heat. In another second they were out of the hole, now on top of a building across the street from the Pokemon Center. They looked down at Suicune, as it raised its nose to the air again. Matt kept Quilava down, while Gastly was still too shamed to move. Drowzee instinctively kept quiet.

What to do, what to do! Matt thought, racking his brain for a plan. He was sure Suicune is a Water type, so Quilava wasn't effective. Gastly is out of it. The only Pokemon he could use is Drowzee. Removing the rope from his belt, he looked down at the Pokemon, who had flattened himself down on the ground, to keep below the ledge that hid them from Suicune's view. He'd never really used Drowzee for battles before. Who knew that Drowzee was so intelligent?

"Drowzee," thought Matt, hoping it was reading his thoughts. "Do you have any ideas?"

Drowzee nodded. Surprisingly quickly, Drowzee drew a small map of the street in the snow that covered the buildings roof. He marked an X for where Suicune was, a star for where they were, and an O for where the hole was. He pointed at Matt, then stuck his finger in the snow in front of the Pokemon center. He was going to teleport Matt there. Then he pointed at himself and stuck his finger directly where the hole was. If all went as according to plan, then he'd be able to sneak up on Suicune after Matt distracted it. Drowzee then drew a Pokeball, and pointed to Gastly and Quilava. Matt nodded and, as quietly as possible, recalled them.

Matt stood up, and Drowzee teleported him to his spot. Suicune still had its nose in the air. Matt let out a whistle, and it turned to face him. Again Matt froze, his spine shivering. It took a step towards him. Matt didn't move. Another step. Still he didn't move. Suicune looked at him, and then let out a Roar. Suddenly, Matt felt himself being pulled backwards…

_bulbabulbabulbabulba_

"I do not want to battle. Stop asking me," said Marcus, walking away from the young boy, still holding a Pokeball out, eyes wide. This is why Marcus hated Route 202.

"C'mon, you gotta battle me!" yelled the boy, running after him. "How is my Bidoof supposed to grow if I don't beat trainers?"

Markus sighed. He turned around and put his hand on his shoulder. "I know how you feel, kid, I really do, so I'm going to give you a few tips. Okay?" The kid nodded. "Good. Firstly, if a trainer looks strong, and you're weak, don't challenge him. This basically goes for anyone above your age group. Secondly, Bidoof aren't that strong. If I were you, I'd catch a Shinx. They're all over this route at this time of the day. Not to mention, it's an Electric type, so you can train it on the Starly around here. And thirdly, if you really want to battle that bad, battle the four other trainers on this route who have already begged me to battle."

At "other trainers" the boy looked surprised, and turned to look out over one of the small cliffs that were all over the route. Four other trainers, all as small and weak as he, sat waiting for battles. Finally, he could get stronger, and eventually challenge the Pokemon Gyms, and then the Pokemon League. He promised himself he'd become a master. Catch every Pokemon. Beat every Gym. Conquer every trainer. Pick up every item! Win every Contest! Bake every Poffin! Dance every-

Marcus watched as the boy spaced out, starry eyed. He shrugged, then walked on. Usually by now he'd be able to see the lights from Jubilife. But it was all dark ahead. As he entered the black city, he found it was covered in a thick fog. Straining his eyes for a Pokemon Center, which would have power, he lumbered through the mist. He kept his hands out in front, to make sure he didn't run into anything. Taking small steps, he made his way though Jubilife, practically blind.

Eventually, this method became tiring. Somehow he found a curb and sat down. Closing his eyes, he imagined Julia: her kind face, her sunny disposition, her curves. She winked at him, and said his name. Markus smiled, but then kicked himself. He had let time get away from him… He had let her get away from him. The picture in his mind again called his name. "Markus!" He had the perfect chance, and he messed it up, like everything else. His life was just one big screw-up.

"MARKUS!" the picture yelled loudly, surprising him. He opened his eyes, and of in the distance of the fog, Julia stood. Not in his mind. Real.

"Julia?" he whispered.

"Markus!" she yelled again.

"Julia!" he replied and ran towards her, opening up his arms, ready to embrace her. She opened her arms to, ready to greet him. He was now only one step away from her. Suddenly, his foot hit something hard, a rock, maybe a curb. He fell, flat on his face. Slowly, he began to black out. The word "Markus" echoed in his head, in Julia's voice.

_bulbabulbabulbabulba_

The Pokemon Center doors shut as Matt hit the ground. Rubbing his head, he saw the faces of Cheryl and Jasmine looking back at him. He then remembered what was happening.

"Drowzee!" he yelled, jumping to his feet. He rushed to the door to open it, but it wouldn't.

"You're going back out there?" asked Cheryl, shaking like a leaf. "Are you crazy? Its not safe!"

"Drowzee is still out there!" he yelled, spinning around, just to notice hundreds of faces looking at him. The entire place was filled with the young and old, some shaking, some yelling, some being very calm.

"What were you doing out there in the first place?" asked Jasmine, Magnemite floating at her shoulder. "That thing is way to powerful for any of us to take on." She looked at Magnemite, whose eye seemed to close.

"She's right!" said a voice from somewhere in the crowd.

"It took down my Abomasnow!" a woman yelled.

"We don't even know what kind of Pokemon it is!" said another.

"Or if its even a Pokemon!" yelled someone else.

A great commotion broke out as the people began to yell out their thoughts. Matt pinched the bridge of his nose. While he was stuck in here with all these people, Drowzee was out there alone, with Suicune. He turned at rammed at the door, but it didn't budge. Two men from the crowd grabbed him to stop him from rushing it again.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" one of them yelled.

"It'll come in here!" said the other.

"I don't care!" yelled Matt, pulling out of their hold. "My Pokemon is out there fighting that thing! And if that Suicune doesn't kill him, he'll freeze to death!"

A silence came over the crowd. Some had a puzzled look on their faces, wondering what Suicune was. Jasmine stared at him in shock.

"Suicune can't be here," she said, quietly. "If its even real… it would be in Johto."

"Well I got a good look at it, and that thing is definitely a Suicune." replied Matt. "And if I don't do something, my Drowzee is going to die!"

"What can you do?" Jasmine asked him. He could see fire in her eyes. "Are you going to go out there and reason with that thing? Are you going to sacrifice yourself for your Drowzee?"

Matt shook his head. "I… I don't know… But I've got to do something!" he said. Reaching into his pack, he pulled out Gastly's ball. It appeared in a flash of light, still shamed. "Gastly," said Matt, "Can you take me outside?" Eyes closed, it nodded. Milliseconds later he stood outside the front door. Jasmine glared at him, but he wasn't fazed. Gastly automatically returned to its Pokeball. Now what would he do... He looked around for Drowzee, but couldn't see him. Running into the middle of the street, he fished the bells out of his pocket. Maybe… he thought.

He was right. From behind him, Suicune let out a deafening roar. Spinning around, Matt came face to face with the creature. It growled as Matt held the bells in front of its face, holding one of the delicate crystals between his thumb and forefinger. Matt really hoped that this was what the Suicune was after, or else he'd be dead.

"I'll make you a deal," said Matt, not believing the words that came from his mouth. "Show me to where Drowzee is, and then go back to Johto. I'll give you the bells." It studied him, making sure he was telling the truth. Its breath was ice cold on Matt's face. Shutting its eyes, it seemed to have accepted. Matt held out the bells, and it lowered its head to get them.

Suddenly, it fell to the ground. Matt looked from its face to the bells and back. What could have… then he spotted a yellow and brown Pokemon, lying asleep behind it. Hastily shoving the bells in his pocket, he ran to Drowzee. After returning Drowzee to its Pokeball, he looked at Suicune. It really was quite a majestic creature. White diamond-shaped spots of fur ran down its coat, and though it wasn't moving, the cloud of its mane still blew. Matt turned back to the Pokemon Center. Before he reached the door, he heard something move behind him.

Turning around, he found Suicune back on all fours again. It growled, ready to charge. Matt was again frozen in his tracks. It let out another Roar, and Matt found the strength to run. He bolted for the alley beside the Pokemon Center, where he might be able to hide. Before he knew what was happening, however, something very hard hit him in the back, making things burst from his backpack and shoving him down nto the snow on the side of the road. He turned over, and Suicune put one paw on his chest. Matt had never felt this much pressure on him in his life, physically and mentally. Slowly, he reached into his pocket for the bells, but the Suicune barked when he moved.

Matt was now sure he was dead. He barely felt the tips of his fingers in the cold snow… Wait, that wasn't snow… it was cold, but… was it his only shot? As slowly as possible, Matt turned the strange Pokeball that Trey had given him around and felt for the switch. Whatever was in here, he hoped it was strong. As he pressed the button, the light blinded him.

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"Ben, Julia, I'm home!" called Julia's mother, Angela, as she opened the front door. No one answered her. She walked into the living room to find her son asleep on the couch. A pizza box, an overturned cereal box, three different bags of chips, and at least twenty sodas sat on her good table. Ben lay on her good couch in his underwear and Combee leaned against the wall from on top of the couch. Sighing, she walked out of the room and into the kitchen, making herself a strong cup of coffee. As Angela shut the refrigerator after getting out the milk, she noticed a note from her daughter.

"'Dear Mom'," she read out loud, "'My fiancé called and said he was coming two weeks early. I'm so excited! I left already to meet him in Hearthome City. Took Piplup, no need to worry. I'll be back to show Matt off in a couple of days. Love, Julia. PS. You really know how to pick the hunks!'" Reading it over one more time, she shrugged and put it back up on the fridge. She'd call Julia later on.

After finishing her coffee, Angela took a glass from the cabinet and filled it with cold water. Returning to the living room, she poured the contents of the glass onto her son. Ben jumped like a scared Meowth and fell from the couch, knocking over the chips and sodas. This commotion awoke Combee, who lost its balance and fell on top its master. As Ben slowly grasped reality, he turned to see his mother walking away.

"I'm going to go take a bubble bath," she called behind her. "I want that mess cleaned up by the time I'm done."

Climbing the stairs, Angela heard Ben whining from below. She entered her room to find her faithful Glameow perched upon her bed, eyes fixed at the door as they had been when she left.

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Markus awoke suddenly, with a jolt. All around him was pitch black, and the ground felt rocky. He rose to his feet, feeling dizzy. He could see absolutely nothing, but in the distance he heard a dripping. Every second or so… drop… drop… A distinct aroma, that of burning steel… no, that of soil overturned after years… A chill suddenly went down his spine.

"H-hello?" Markus called out into the blackness. In the blink of an eye, a red light appeared about twenty feet from him. Markus took a step forward, and two more red lights began to shine. Taking another step, Markus asked, "Is… is anyone there?" four more lights appeared. He gasped and took a step back. Behind the first few lights, fourteen more slowly appeared from nowhere. Though still dark, Markus could just about make out the outline of three hulking creatures, each about a foot taller than he. One glimmered in the red light, while one reflected it like a mirror. Then, all three let out a cry, and something behind them rose. Twenty feet above the others, six more lights flickered on. These were bright enough to slightly illuminate the area. The four creatures in front of him… They seemed out of this world. One, made of rock, took a step forward, his stone joints scraping together as it moved. A great brown rock, supposedly its hand, reached out and touched the area of Markus's heart. Markus felt something flow through him, like a wave of tingling, spreading out from where the Pokemon had touched. As the wave spread to his feet, the creature let its arm fall back to its side. Slowly it turned and beeped. Then Markus got his first good look at the others.

One was made of steel, or something like it. Its body curved in an unnatural way, as though it had been forged by a human hands or the like. The third creature glimmered in the red light, and Markus saw it was made purely out of ice, save seven lights arranged where its "face" was, Markus assumed. Behind them, the larger one stood. This one, unlike the others, seemed to have actual flesh. Its top was still hidden in shadow, but he could see what looked like vines of some sort wrapping down its large arm. Embedded in its chest, the six bright crystals seemed to be the source of the strange light. It gave a deep cry of its own, and the other two creatures moved forward, the ice one floating and the steel one moving slowly, its metallic legs bending unnaturally. As they moved into place besides the rock Pokemon, the larger creature swiveled to its side.

Sitting cross-legged behind it was a young man, probably only five years or so older than Markus. He seemed to be in a trance of some sort. His clothes were ratty and torn, and a baseball cap loomed over his face, obscuring his eyes. The larger creature motioned with a giant finger for Markus to walk forward. Carefully, he took a step forward. The man didn't move. Markus looked over his shoulder at the three, and their stares seemed to urge him on. He drew near the man apprehensively. Three feet from him, and the man sat still. Markus could clearly make out, even in the dim red light, the rips and tears on the man's tattered windbreaker. He had a exhilarating air about him even though he didn't move, a scent of experience—adventure. A foot away from him, Markus could see the stubble on his gaunt face. He looked back around at the creatures, and they continued to encourage him with their incomprehensible stares. He took another step, his feet an inch from the man's legs.

Markus stood there, getting no more instruction from the four behind him. As he watched the man, Markus noticed he was barely breathing. He was almost all skin and bones, and the scent that Markus had mistaken before for adventure seemed to have been a lack of bathing for what smelt like months, maybe years. On his back was a ragged pack, which from one look one could see was worn past usefulness. It was smaller than usual, almost like it could just barely hold twenty items or so. Six Pokeballs sat on his belt, each a slightly different color. One regular Pokeball, a Great Ball, an older version of the Safari Ball used in Hoenn and Kanto, an Ultra Ball, a strange purple one that Markus had never seen before, and a smooth, pink ball, that seemed to give off a tiny light, small enough to be blocked from Markus' view before by the particular placement of the man's knee. Strange writing, like the one on the ball Trey had given him, covered it.

In his thoughts, Markus failed to notice a fragile hand beginning to reach out. It barely tapped the tip Markus' shoe, making him jump and fall backwards in fright. As Markus scrambled to his feet, the man looked up at him. Smiling from ear to ear, the man stood. Markus looked at his face. The man's eyes penetrated him, seemed to search his soul. The man took a step forward, and Markus stood still. He put his face close to Markus', squinting. They stood there, still silent as ever. The man opened his mouth, as though to speak.

"Boo."

Markus jumped again, letting out a small yelp. The man spun around, laughing as he walked to the back wall of the cave, barely visible. Markus shook as he watched him almost disappear. The man turned back around and looked past Markus to the creatures, who continued to stare. He gave them a nod, and they let out four high pitched cries that made Markus cover his ears. The man didn't flinch. Instead he laughed at Markus again, before clapping his hands together twice. Lights on the ceiling flashed on, blinding Markus. As his sight came back, Markus finally realized he was standing in a giant stadium. He looked at the man, who had now unhooked the Pokeball from his belt and spun it on one finger.

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He poked at the fire with a stick, Umbreon perched beside him. They had found nothing yet, and he decided to camp on the beach. The parts of the island that had not been covered in volcanic rock were covered in thick layers of dust. Only part of the island was available to search anyway, as going too close to the volcano could be fatal from the toxic gas. Already he could see Koffing and Weezing overhead floating towards the volcano. Slugma and Macargo were shining bright in the distance, sleepily enjoying its new environment. Very few Pokemon could survive in the toxic fog, and most of them lived on this island, living in caves hidden on the side of the volcano. At the foot of the volcano Charmander, Charmeleon, Magby, and Magmar gathered, surrounding a Charizard and Magmortar standing on two large rocks, who seemed to be speaking to the crowd. He fished a notepad out of his pack and wrote down what little he could see of it. He thought of sending his Arcanine to see what was happening, but thought it better to let them alone. Pokemon politics were as strange and twisted as humans'.

He set a hand on Umbreon's head, attempting to calm it. Since they had arrived it had been on edge, its fur standing up on its back. He felt a presence also, but tried to keep his composure. There was nothing he could do in the dark, with the only light the fire in front of him and the fires in the distance of the rallying Pokemon. Yawning, he unpacked his sleeping back and spread it out before the fire. Lying down, he looked up at the stars, smothered by the dust still in the sky. Umbreon curled up beside him, ears still alert, though it shut its eyes. Slowly, he let sleep come over him.

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_It looked sharply at him as he ascended the steps. He removed his cap and sat down on the edge, looking down into the nothingness. The wind returned, and on the smooth marble of the floor he could see a light blue glow behind him. In his pocket the Azure Flute shook. He took it out and began to play a soothing melody. The Being purred in delight. It let out a low hum, going along with the song. A warm feeling came over him, the Being affecting his own feelings. He continued along, his fingers moving mechanically over the instrument. As the song came to end, It became quiet. _

_Off in the distance, in the nothing, a bright blue light flashed. He knew it from somewhere before, though he couldn't put his fingers on it. He'd seen it, long ago. Behind him, a dark aura surrounded It. Its mane seemed to have grown in the seconds that he'd looked away. Its eyes opened, glowing red. It motioned towards the stairs with its head, and he got the point. Putting his cap back on, without a word, he descended back down the steps to earth. _

_As he got to the bottom of the steps, back to the dirt of the earth, he heard a voice from the top of the staircase call to him. "Puella dormit est." He nodded and understood his next duty. _

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AN: Not totally horrid chapter. Kinda choppy again, but not too bad. It got what I needed it to get done, so I'm happy with it. I think after this chapter I'm going to post an extra I've had written for a while, but I want to check over it. It'll really spoil later chapters though, so I'm really thinking of keeping it under wraps, but I want to post it, and… XP. I'm confuzzled now. Also, I think the part between Matt and Jasmine was kinda rushed. Could one of my few readers please tell me if you agree? I'm really starting to hate Matt. I just can't figure out how to get him in the right place. I've had very little Julia this chapter, I know. Let's see… new characters… there's the Red based character, with the Regis. I planned originally for him to meet Matt in the last chapter, _sine_ Regis, and he'd only speak in quotes from Edgar Allen Poe. XD I decided it was way to crack and threw the character out, but then brought him back. I like him now. Markus fits the situation better too. Oh, and I've decided to write shorter chapters from now on, based upon one of the main characters (Markus, Matt, or Julia) with some of the side stories thrown in (Trey, Blue). I have more to say, but I don't want to bore you guys anymore. Till next chapter, Bulba out.


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